Are your family trips an exercise in pleasure or comfort? Behavior economics guru Dan Ariely notes that there's a vivid difference between the two... and it may mean the difference between a fantastic vacation and...

People with disabilities shouldn't have to try and pass as able in the workplace, says writer and comedian Maysoon Zayid. But the sad reality is that America's largest minority remains invisible throughout popular...

You've Heard of OCD, But Do You Really Understa...You've Heard of OCD, But Do You Really Understand It? :: Big Thinkers on Mental Health

The Suicide Rate is Going Up. Here’s What We Ca...The Suicide Rate is Going Up. Here’s What We Can Do to Stop it.

Big Think and the Mental Health Channel are proud to launch Big Thinkers on Mental Health, a new series dedicated to open discussion of anxiety, depression, and the many other psychological disorders that affect millions worldwide.

Does the Flu Shot Give You the Flu?

In a double-blind study on the effects of the flu vaccine, in which half the participants were given a placebo, the only side-effect reported more often in the group that received the real vaccine was soreness in the arm. The results demonstrate the powerful role the mind plays in how we receive (or not) our yearly flu vaccine. Because one version of the vaccine, a nasal spray which is becoming more popular in the US, contains a small amount of the live flu virus, there is a tendency to believe that your chances of contracting the flu increase after receiving the vaccine.

What's the Big Idea?

Although it's not a perfect fix, the flu vaccine does make it less likely that you will contract the flu. Each year, the World Health Organization identifies three flu viruses they think are most likely to spread through the northern and southern hemisphere (thus people living in different hemisphere receive a different vaccine). "[A] large study from 2007 published in the highly regarded journal, The New England Journal of Medicine, found the vaccine protected seven out of ten people. Protection also varies from year to year, depending on the accuracy of the WHO’s predictions."